Illinois+Masonic+Medical+Center

A lawsuit filed on behalf of Shelby A. Moran, a 39-year-old mother of five, alleged that she was given Prostaglandin F2 Alpha for a [|safe, legal abortion] at Illinois Masonic Medical Center in January of 1978. Immediately after the drug was injected, Shelby experienced grossly abnormal elevation of her blood pressure. The abortionist, Dr. John J. Barton, thought that the elevation would be transient, and left the facility. Half an hour later, Shelby went into cardiopulmonary arrest. She suffered brain damage due to lack of oxygen, causing dementia and speech aphasia. Shelby was no longer able to care for herself, much less her five children. She required 24-hour care in a nursing home until her death at Hazel Crest on September 16, 1999.